Absolute Beginner - so many questions!

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G'day!

I just bought myself my very first car - a series I EB falcon. I wanted one pretty badly when they came out, and I gotta tell you it felt pretty good driving it home - albeit 15 years later :)

Anyway, it was a very cheap buy - $750 plus $400 for roadworthy - and as you'd expect at that price, she's not perfect. I'm an inveterate tinkerer but my field is IT and electronics. Having never had a car (I only got my licence a year ago - very slack for a 30 something!) I never had the need or the opportunity to learn about them.

Which leaves me in a bit of a bind - I've got a wonderful new toy to play with, but no idea where to start. Absolutely nothing. Nada. Zip. Zilch. At least I know how my clients feel now!

My plan (if you could call it that) is to get the car running at least as well as it did the day it was made, and then turn it into a Snarling Monster Of Doom.

Before I do that though I've gotta learn about these things. Now, if it was an electronic or IT sort of thing, I'd leaf through some documentation, pick up my tools and pull it apart. Car engines, however.. aside from the fact that any given bit currently looks like any other to me, I'm keenly aware that if I cock up I've destroyed something I can't replace at the very least - at the very worst, I'm terrified I'm going to make something explode and hurt somebody. Years of working with insanely high voltage/current devices has taught me caution!

So: Where do I start?? I know there are tings called 'lifters' that need to be replaced pretty quick smart (they're the reason it sounds like a sewing machine, right?) and there's something very fishy going on with an oil pump or something (red dash lights are never good...) - would picking up a copy of the gregory's manual give me enough info to do jobs like that myself? She runs rough - should I go out and buy a xenon strobe, or would a laptop be more useful? Previous owners had the car for 15 years and aside from the occaisional service, they just drove it - there's some remedial work to be done!

Any and all advice will be welcomed greatfully - even if it's nothing more than the name of a solid mechanic!

Thanks in advance guys!
 
Another IT/Electronics type! Woohoo!

As with all the best electronic and mechanical devices, the manufacturer's documentation is the best.

I've managed to get a set of Ford manuals for the XF series and ED series smuggled into the 'States, and I have to say they're pretty good.

The next thing is to find a manual covering the EEC engine computer; it's a pretty simple thing to an IT guy, the hard part is where the electronics meet the mechanicals. As an electronics guy, you should know that when the sensor reports a problem...yes, sometimes the sensor is bad, but sometimes the sensor really is reporting a problem!

Between your meter, the Ford service manuals, and the EEC electronics tech guide, you should be able to determine what needs to be replaced and how to replace it.

Despite the " I'm keenly aware that if I cock up I've destroyed something I can't replace at the very least" -- bullfeathers! You can get the parts at any wrecker, you paid 700 for a complete car and you can find another for parts if you desperately need. As for hurting someone...follow the manual, and have a mechanic (or mechanical friend) check over the parts you're not sure of. Brakes and steering are the biggest ones; as long as those work right you're pretty much able to get out of whatever else has gone wrong. ;)

Good luck!

Ben
 
Thanks for the encouragement mate :)

Brakes and steering were definately my first priorities, and they're in decent shape. Power steering pump is getting on in years and the front discs will need at least a good machining before too long - but for now I can stop in a distance that scares the cr*p out of the missus (her old corona slows down a bit when you put the brakes on - even scarier, if you ask me) :)

Would be very handy to have a mechanic nearby indeed. I think it's time I had a chat with my sister, see if she can't find one to go out with or something. It's what family is for, right? :)

I've already seen almost info in here to get started on the lifters. Seriously - they're the bits making the ugly banging noise after I start her up, the the 'duggaduggadugga' noise whileI'm moving? Looks like a fiddly job, but with no electrickery to worry about I should be able to handle it :)

Edit: And yeah, sender unit was the first suspect and was replaced straight up.. no joy :(
 
In a big box!

...actually, I just have an XE crossflow for a US Fairmont (actually Mercury Zephyr--same car, different badges).

Next project is an OHC (maybe an AU?...or a BA XR6T!) to slide into my Datsun 280Z. :twisted:

Ben
 
My uncle loves is Z's, and from what I've seen of them with good reason. Didn't ever even occur to me that they might need a bigger donk in em!
 
Would be very handy to have a mechanic nearby indeed. I think it's time I had a chat with my sister, see if she can't find one to go out with or something. It's what family is for, right?

so what's your sister look like....j/k :lol:
 
That your beasty in the pic? Pretty sure I've seen it round the traps. There's a similar one getting around that's all black as well, but haven't seen it in a few months (used to park next to my work, then one day it left on the back of a truck). Big monster of a thing, god only knows how you guys park em!
 
OK, some thoughts:

Replace the rotors (brake discs) with new ones from DBA if you can stretch that far. They make nice enhanced-performance types. Do you have ABS? If so, you'll need the rotors with the ABS sensor ring in them. Good wheel bearings come from Timken. Replace the front ones with the rotors. If the rears aren't noisy, leave them be.

Rotor machining means you need to get the discs off the car, clean them, machine them, regrease the wheel bearings and refit... Easier in my book to spend less time adding newer and better parts.

Check for slop in the diff. Should it be iffy, get a later one and swap the whole unit. The only cause to rebuild one is if you want LSD as the locking guts wear out after about 100000K.

The noisy followers could be due to low oil pressure. Oil pumps wear, and bearing clearances increase with wear; the two combine to bleed off pressure. An old-time fix is to machine the coverplate of the oil pump (inside the sump) flat, removing the extra clearance ground into it by rotating gears. A bashed in sump can dislocate the oil pump pickup tube or crack it, resulting in poor sucking ability - and lower oil pressure.

Buy an aftermarket mechanical oil pressure gauge and plumb it in temporarily. With the engine at operating temp, read the pressure.

Rather than worry about timing at this point, look at the plugs. Check the gap is around 50-55 thou (ULP) or less for LPG. Any variations in appearance will tell you tales. Check your plug leads for similar resistances to each other.

I will stick my neck out and say many early E-series have had top end services; it's highly possible the head is not original and if you find this true, it may direct your attention one way or another. Compression tests are handy little indicators of engine health, as are vacuum readings both idling and on the fly.

The Ford books are WAY better than Gregorys manuals. Worth every cent. Also you need a decent multimeter, but maybe that's taken care of!

There you go. More info, albeit with no interest in your sister. :roll:
 
Thanks for the post mate :) Not going to pretend I understand all of it yet, but I will :)

Given me some stuff to think about - I'm starting to wonder if you've taken my car for a drive somehow :)

In order then:

- Brakes will get a further upgrade a little way down the track. Rear discs and pads (wellm the round bits and the lumpy bits) were replaced for roadworthy, with the front set being marginal. I reckon by about march I'll be taking your advice. No ABS (only got a series I GL; wish it was a series 2 S pack or even - gasp - the XR) and from what I'm told its too much hassle for not enough return to retrofit it. Ah well, just gotta make sure I never need it

- There is a bit of slack in the diff region, how'd you know? It's a bit low on the list of priorities due to price and the fact that other stuff is more urgent - engines don't do too well if the oil stops flowing!

- Low oil pressure is a definite concern for me. After she gets warm (a brisk 20 minutes drive, usually by the same spot on my morning commute) the oil light starts to flicker when idling in gear.. a little longer, it stays lit when not under load. When I'm actually driving, ie moving with a little bit of accelerator pedal pressure, it seems fine - just lumpy. I will have a good long long at the sump too - I do know it had a meeting with a brick some little sh*t left on the M1 a few months before I bought it which required the front LHS tyre to be replaced. Very solid chance that it hurt the sump as you said. Good call!

- I'll change the plugs this weekend, even I can do that with half my brain disabled by booze :)

- I do worry it's been lightly toasted if not cooked; when the foot is all the way down and the revs are approaching all the way up it makes a sound that would be impressive if it wasn't so sharp and cracky. Useful when overtaking someone who has pissed me off (love the ford snarl). I guess I've been putting it off in case the news is bad...

As for my sister? Well, she's kinda built like gunman's pic - only she's scarier if you're in her path on a bad day!
 
If you have room to tuck a couple of basic tools in the shed, start with a good oversize trolley jack and ENGRAVE YOUR NAME ALL OVER IT. If you don't someone will forget to return it after borrowing one day. At least let them have eternal guilt.

Then a pair of chassis stands. I like the cheap and cheerful "StanFred" brand ones. Now you can do a whole lot more inspection/diagnosis and pondering, safely. Follow the jack instructions with the stands. Demolish a pallet and cut the main rails into threes. You now have some decent wheel safety blocks. As the former CEO of CHEP pallets famously said "We haven't lost 14 million pallets; we just don't know where they are".

With this basic gear, and a digital camera, you're set to make better diagnoses and ask even more questions. :roll:
 
check the thickness of your rotors, if there is plenty of meat left you should be able to find a shop that can remachine your rotors on the car. it doesn't take very long and is much cheaper than new discs.

yeah that's my cobra in the pic, 302 4spd, don't get to drive it as much as i'd like too.

by the way i am wrecking a ef xr6 if you need anything, the mechanicals are going into my 69 XT but the rest is available. can i interest you in a complete xr6 interior or many a set of tickford springs?
 
First up: Thanks everybody for the awesomely helpful replies. Given me lots to think about and do :)

Been busy as hell since Saturday; when things quiet down I'll be back with a proper reply!
 
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